「……」
「…Good morning.」
「…Just to ask, what time is it now?」
「…Just before 4 PM.」
When I woke up, the number of people around had significantly decreased, and the sun was approaching the horizon. It’s still bright, so it’s far from evening. However, it was definitely not a time that could be described as midday.
Yuna, rubbing her sleepy eyes as she sits up, lets her unfocused gaze wander around, and soon after understanding the situation, she opens her eyes wide. Normally, the expression “eyes about to spill” is used to praise the size of one’s pupils, but in her case, it conveys an urgent sense of danger, as if they might rot and fall out.
「…We slept quite a bit.」
「We did fall asleep.」
「…What should we do, keep playing?」
「I guess not.」
I’m tired. And dry.
I didn’t shower before sleeping, so the salt feels uncomfortable. I want to shower right away. I don’t have the physical or mental energy to jump back into the sea.
It seems Yuna felt the same way, as she sighed heavily while brushing off salt particles from the ridge of her nose with her fingertips.
「Why does it feel so anticlimactic?」
It’s supposed to be summer vacation. My first time at the sea. I gathered the courage to invite him out. I even lied to Onee-chan to come secretly.
She seems to be still groggy, speaking her thoughts out loud. Being a gentleman, I only skim the surface of statements related to privacy, making an effort not to understand their meaning. In other words, I don’t know what she’s saying.
「Shall we head back for now?」
「…Yeah. My whole body feels gross.」
「There’s apparently a shower right over there.」
As we packed up the beach mat and other items, I followed behind Yuna, who was walking unsteadily──perhaps still sleepy or shocked by something──thinking about a certain thing. It wasn’t a big deal. Just that, considering she had invited me out, even if with a somewhat forced introduction, I thought it would be boring to just go home seamlessly.
I quickly showered and changed. As per the stereotype that girls take longer to bathe (though this wasn’t a bath), Yuna hadn’t come out yet.
「…Fumu.」
Well, this isn’t an unfamiliar area.
Although I don’t come here specifically for swimming, I’ve visited a few times.
So, there are some places I know.
Even if the other person is a monster, it’s not good to lack courtesy. Even among close friends, manners are important. To build smooth human relationships, it’s important not just to receive but also to take action yourself. I think.
And so, I headed to my intended destination before Yuna came out.
「Hey, Adashino.」
「Nn.」
「Where did you go?」
「To answer nature’s call.」
When I returned, holding a bag in one hand, Yuna, who had apparently dried her hair, was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. She had been fidgeting like a lost child until she saw me, but the moment she recognized me, she regained her confident expression. Honestly, it’s a bit amusing.
「Even so, you took too long. I waited for about ten minutes, though?」
「It was far away. You know, because it’s the sea.」
While casually dodging her question, I naturally steer the conversation towards heading home. Even Yuna, with her honed technique, didn’t seem to find it odd, though she pouted her lips but followed obediently.
I fully demonstrate my gentlemanly moves by taking her luggage and handing her the bag I was carrying instead.
「…What’s this?」
「A drink. Aren’t you thirsty?」
「I am.」
I owe her for choosing my clothes and for inviting me to the sea. Offering a drink or two is nothing. Plus, I wanted one myself.
「I’ll give you one.」
「Eh, really? Thanks.」
As she muttered, she pulled out a plastic cup with a round plastic lid from the bag. The lid has a thick──so thick it could be called too thick──straw inserted into it. It’s probably a straw with no other use than for drinking tapioca or something similar. This isn’t tapioca, though.
In short, it’s watermelon juice.
I went to buy it because there happened to be a shop selling it nearby.
「…Thanks.」
「It’s not something you need to thank me for so many times.」
「I’m saying it because I want to.」
「Ah, is that so?」
Scary.
It’s scary how straightforward Yuna is being.
The Yuna in my mind would say something like, “What’s this, watermelon juice!? Just because I’m a zombie doesn’t mean I like blood! Don’t lump me in with vampires! We’re both undead, but still!” and then hit me. She would never blush in the early afternoon sunlight, shyly expressing gratitude.
「Do you have a fever or something?」
「I don’t.」
Yuna, as if to hide her reddened face──surely due to the sunlight──turns her back to me and hugs the container to her chest. In that position, I also received my container and bit into the overly thick straw. It’s hard to suck.
Perhaps this is the remnant of a tapioca milk tea. Now that I think about it, that shop had a lot of trendy products. Of course, including tapioca. This thick straw might be a repurposed one from the decreased consumption of tapioca.
「Don’t you think so?」
「I don’t.」
「I see…」
A clean cut.
A clear breeze and bright moon.
Dark willows and bright flowers.
I was deflated by her overly quick response.
Just kidding.